Shroud of Turin: Totally Fake, Or Is It?
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The Shroud of Turin is obviously fake… or is it? Let’s discuss what it is and some of the facts and history behind it. Once you have all the info, you can decide for yourself whether you think the Shroud of Turin is real or a hoax.
What is the Shroud of Turin?
The Shroud of Turin consists of a linen cloth made from flax that is 14 feet long and 3 1/2 feet wide. It has a faint image of a bearded, crucified man with bloodstains that match the crucifixion wounds Jesus of Nazareth experienced.
Where is the Shroud of Turin?
The Shroud was located in France for 200 years beginning in 1356. It is now located in Turin, Italy and has been there since 1578. It has been preserved and admired as the burial shroud that wrapped Jesus. All of this has been recorded in the Bible. From 1450-1983 the royal Savoy family owned the Shroud of Turin. The former King of Italy, Humberto II died in March of 1983 and, in his will, left the sacred linen to the Catholic Church.
What are Some Shroud of Turin Facts?
- 1889 – It was photographed for the first time and the image was a positive, meaning that the image on the cloth is a negative.
- 1975 – Two Air Force scientists used a VP-8 Image Analyzer and discovered the image on the Shroud contained encoded 3D data. This meant that the cloth was wrapped around a real human figure at the time the image was first formed.
- The Shroud contains 58 different pollen grains and 17 of them are indigenous to Europe. Some are exclusive to the area of the Dead Sea and Turkey.
Is the Shroud of Turin Fake?
Below is some evidence that suggests that the Shroud is a fake.
- Where was the Shroud before 1356? The location of the Shroud prior to 1356 is not clear or consistent. Therefore, critics have alleged that it was created by a medieval artist.
- 1988 – The Shroud was carbon dated by 3 laboratories in Oxford, Zurich and Arizona. They found a date range origin from somewhere between 1260 to 1390, which indicated the cloth was only about 700 years old. However, it was later found that the sampling used was not part of the original cloth.
- According to an eminent church historian, Antonio Lombatti, the Shroud is a fake and is 1 of 40 “burial cloths” of Jesus.
- The Bible describes Jesus’ burial cloth as follows, which all contradict the truth of the Shroud:
- ‘Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs.’ [John 19:40]
- ‘So Peter… reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter… went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen.’ [John 20:3-7]
- ‘Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves…’ [Luke 24:12]
Check out this man’s theory as to why the Shroud is a fake. It’s actually pretty interesting and rather simple how he explains it. (The video is pretty short too, just over 2 minutes.)
Shroud of Turin New Evidence
Everyone has their own opinion on the Shroud of Turin and recently Pope Francis shared his own thoughts on this potentially sacred cloth. The Pope confirmed the devotion to the Shroud as a sign of the passion and death of Jesus. New evidence is found regularly about the Shroud of Turin and you keep tabs on it here by visiting Shroud.com.
Do you think the Shroud of Turin is real or fake? Why?